


Look Towards a Better Future

by valeria1314151611



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-08
Updated: 2015-12-08
Packaged: 2018-05-05 17:13:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 566
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5383772
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/valeria1314151611/pseuds/valeria1314151611
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>AU- In which Anderson meets and adopts a Earthborn Female Shepard and our hero grows up similar to Spacer, but meets, befriends, and romances everyone's favorite Turian Rebel prior to the events of Mass effect.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Look Towards a Better Future

**Author's Note:**

> At the moment this will just be a little story I do along with a Dragon age one, seeing as I'm in college and all... As to how I figured out the fact that Anderson is only 17 years older then Shepard... I just subtracted his birth year from Shepard's. Updates won't be so frequent and depending on how this does the frequency could go up but that also depends on my personal life. I hope you enjoy this, more characters will be added as the story enters the Mass Effect timeline. I apologize for any incorrect spelling or grammar as I am Bi-lingual so I do have issues at times. Please enjoy.

She is only ten years old and it hurts Anderson. Large blue eyes scared, alone, hurt, and defensive of herself.

She is only ten years old and he can already see that she’s alone in world. What he could only imagine was once was bright red hair, is roughly cut unevenly, knotted and caked in dirt and grime.

She is only ten years old and he’s angry with the world. Her cloths are too large, and when he asks the social workers that appeared for her why this was. They can only shrug indifferently and claim they do not know, it is obvious to him it is a lie.

She is only ten years old and he cannot help but be intrigued and surprised with her skills. He’d caught her when she had tried to steal his credit chit while he was on shore leave with his crew on earth, they’d called social services and he had to watch as she clung to him begging him to not let her go, before she finally gave and was dragged away by the worker who was to oversee her. It’s only after she’s gone that he notices it, she’d somehow swiped his Omni-tool from his person it had all been an act.

She’s only ten years old when he tracks her down, the orphanage is old and many of the children are grouped and keep away from those outside their group. She is alone, locked in a room separate from the rest, he hears some of the handlers annoyance with her, dislike her too free spirited attitude, her to over curious mind that has her disassembling electronics and stealing books from store’s that, when he asks about them, are for the purpose of learning and adventure, she’s a trouble maker they say, what younger children or near shake their heads and whisper that she’s nice, the older that have yet to actually flee frown and curse the caretakers for being unjust. She’s only ten years old when he finally confronts her. Her name is Grace Shepard, her mother murdered less than 5 years prior for reasons unknown. She wishes to join the military when she comes of age, she ten years old and wants to see the universe, wants to meet aliens and use an Omni-tool, “I’ve only ever seen adults with them, Mama had one too. She used to let me play with it all the time.” She returns his Omni-tool without a fuss and without being asked. “I’m sorry for taking it. I…. just wanted to have one too…” She apologizes and he can’t help but notice that while her eyes still held the same emotions as before, they also hold a little spark kindness with sorrow.

She’s only ten years old and he is only twenty-seven years old, but he see’s potential, he sees a fighter, a survivor, a child. He becomes a father, she his daughter, she keeps her name she refuses to take his. “Mama was a Shepard, I have to be a Shepard!” He knows it won’t be easy, he’s not married, and he’s been made a war hero, the First Contact War still oh so very fresh on the people’s minds. Yet looking down at Grace’s blue eyes he can’t help but gently grab her hand, and walk away from the orphanage and their past to look towards a better future.


End file.
